Once the PPDC had established the parameters of how a drift would work, they quickly went to work on outfitting all Jaeger models with cockpits big enough to take two pilots. After many trials, it was discovered that the drift was only compatible with partners that had a strong emotional bond. Interesting how the toughest weapons available to man in the last century or so had to be powered by emotions such as love. Even in the face of war, the things that defined our humanity shone through.
Four of the five Jaegers built after the Yukon were sent out to Russia, China and Japan to fortify defenses in those regions. Each of those countries would go ahead to personalize their Jaegers, but all would work together as one single force with the responsibility of saving mankind.
It is to be noted, that the Jaegers had also achieved something humanity had strived for so long without success. We were finally unified behind one goal, setting aside our differences to work together for the greater good. Countries were cooperating with themselves openly, sharing information and resources that would make the Jaeger program as successful as could be. In the history of mankind, such partnership was a rarity, occasionally happening during times of war but never on this scale.
Jaegers were housed in what came to be known as the 'Shatterdome', with the first one created in Hong Kong in 2015. I was on hand for the opening, once again taking on the role of photo journalist and using my lens to convey to the world, images of what humanity's major defense headquarters looked like.
In addition to this, an academy was created to train pilots for the Jaeger program. There was such a high turnout for volunteers that the PPCD, had to turn away thousands. There were only a few Jaegers available and the process to select compatible pilots was incredibly selective. Many came in hopes of capitalizing on all the good will the Jaegers were getting, a lot simply did not have what it takes to get in the cockpit.
Both Shatterdome and Academy would eventually be closed years later due to a lack of funding from the United Nations, but as of the time when they were launched, with the amount of buzz and excitement they had generated amongst the populace, no one in their right mind could foretell such an ending to both programs.
Jaegers were classified under the Mark class, which simply referred to their launch schedule. The earlier the Mark classification, (Mark-1) the more outdated the technology. In fact the very first Mark-1s utilized nuclear reactors to work, which was not only dangerous to its rangers but also the environments they were supposed to save. The last Marks (4s and 5s) had been perfected to run on digital technology, negating the need for nuclear reactors; protecting its rangers whilst being more efficient to run. This did not come without a cost and heavy drawbacks to the United Nations coffers. A single Mark 5 cost as much as a hundred billion dollars, funds that would eventually lead to the UN cutting ties to the PPCD.
I was lucky enough to take photos of all Mark classes; just going from an aesthetic standpoint, the Mark 5's were in a world of their own. It was also quite evident on the battlefield as the PPCD had its most successful year in 2019, with over 30 active Marks patrolling the waters of the world, spearheaded by the 5s', destroying and taking the fight to the Kaijus wherever they popped up.
Ironically, just as we improved with Mark classifications, the Kaijus were also getting stronger and more deadly with each one that came through the breach. The very first ones to come out were known as Category 1 types. The 1s and 2s were considered the weakest among the Kaiju, though to us they were quite a handful as evidenced by the way they easily tore through Cabo, Manila and some parts of Australia.